Mr. Irwin|A.I.

•4•

Lacey

"I'm rehearsing for the fall jam not going to a freaking night club!" I complain as Theresa picks out clothes for me.

"Where is he taking you?" She asks going through my closet.

"Hell if I know. He just said be comfortable and wear a bathing suit." I answer.

"Ooo a bathing suit? Kinky" She laughs

"Would you just be quiet. Okay, nothing is gonna happen. He's just helping me with a song." I say.

"Yeah, but he's taking you out somewhere where you'll be alone. Seems kinda sketchy to me. But in the good way." She smiles.

I shake my head and walk into the bathroom putting my bikini on. I throw my hair up into a messy bun and apply light make up. I walk out and pick out shorts with a blousey crop top.

"How do I look?" I ask as I slip on my flip flops.

"Simple. But effective" Theresa answers and I smile, shaking my head once again.

"Well I'm leaving now so you can stop teasing me. I'll be home whenever you hear me come through the door." I say before walking out of our dorm.

I walk off campus and to the place Mr. Irwin wanted to meet at. I see him standing outside of his car, I wave back as he gives me a quick wave. I walk up to him, give him a friendly hug before getting into the passenger seat of his car.

"So where are we going?" I ask.

"There's a spot in the woods that my family owns because my father was American and lived here before he met my mother so he owns a certain part. It's cleared out, has tents because we stay there sometimes and there's a lake. Very peaceful, I just figured it would be a good place to rehearse the song." he answers and I nod.

We drive for a good half hour before pulling up to a woodsy place. He gets out and grabs his guitar before opening the door for me to get out. Once I get out he leads me to the place he was telling me about.

"Wow. This is so gorgeous. Gosh, if my parents owned a place like this I would never be home" I laugh.

We walk to the end of the dock and sit down. He takes his guitar out of its case and starts tuning it.

"So I know this is probably completely inappropriate as me being your instructor but I'm just curious, what's your background? As a teacher we get papers on every student we have and you didn't have much information behind your name." Mr. Irwin tells me.

"That's because I have a fucked up background. Let me start from the beginning. I was a bastard child. Conceived out of marriage and completely on accident. My parents were young when I was born and they were druggies. They did drugs every day and drank alcohol every day. Even through out the nine months my mom was carrying me she didn't stop. Because of that when I was born I had to stay in the hospital so they could treat me for withdrawal. My parents were fit to be parents and DSS found that out a year into my life. My parents got sent to jail and that's when I got put into the system. When I turned 15 I started hanging around the wrong crowd. I started using, started drinking, had sex once I got drunk. I got put behind bars when I was 16 and was there for a good few months before a couple came in and saw me. They got me out and took me in as theirs. I've been with them ever since and just recently got adopted by them. And it's the best foster family I've ever been with. They're so amazing." I finish, not realizing I was crying until he reaches over and wipes a tear off my cheek.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that. You're better now aren't you? I mean when you used" he asks me.

"Yeah. Completely sober. When I got taken in with the family I'm with now, they helped me a lot." I nod.